


let's kill tonight

by overlying



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Character Death, Codependency, Emotional Manipulation, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Fake/Pretend Relationship, M/M, Murder
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-05
Updated: 2020-10-09
Packaged: 2021-03-07 23:35:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,239
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26842234
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/overlying/pseuds/overlying
Summary: Cloud agrees to fake a relationship with company president Sephiroth for the money. It all goes downhill from there.
Relationships: Sephiroth/Cloud Strife
Comments: 7
Kudos: 36





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two very different beginnings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the tags won't fully come into play for a while, but that's where we're heading!
> 
>  **chapter specific warnings:** blood, offscreen murder (only for the first scene)

His hands would be shaking so badly if they weren’t being held in Sephiroth’s, leather gloves against his skin. His palms are sticky with blood that isn’t his. He can feel it smeared on his cheek, matting his hair. Out of the corner of his eye, he can see the stains on his shirt, too, though the red doesn’t stand out much from the black. It could just be water, if you squinted hard enough.

“You did so well,” Sephiroth says, chest pressed to Cloud’s back, breath ghosting across his ear. “I’m proud of you.”

“I k-killed—”

“Shhh, he deserved it for trying to hurt you. Right?”

Cloud chokes on a sob, dry heaving. His legs want to give out from under him, but Sephiroth holds him upright.

“I c-can’t—”

“Don’t worry, I’ll get someone to take care of the body.” Sephiroth rubs his thumbs in circles, caressing the skin between the thumb and index fingers. “Let’s get you clean.”

* * *

**_Months Earlier_ **

“Come on,” Zack says. “Just this once?”

“I have shit to do,” Cloud responds, though he’s lying on his side on the couch and scrolling through his phone. 

“I can _tell_ you’re dying to do something besides staying in your room all the time.”

“Because I have work to do. Don’t you?”

Zack shrugs. “It’s not due tomorrow.”

There’s a text from Tifa: _You doing okay? I’m free tomorrow for lunch._ He sighs and doesn’t open it for now, turning his phone off and shoving it back in his pocket. He has assignments he needs to do, sooner rather than later. He also wants to fall asleep on the couch.

“If you go with me tonight and you seriously don't like it, then I won’t bother you about it anymore. You gotta meet some more people, Cloud.”

He groans and rolls over onto his back. “Fine. But I’m allowed to get the fuck out of there at any time.”

Zack grins. “I’ll see you tonight, then.”

Cloud closes his eyes, listening to the front door open and close, and then he’s alone. Maybe he can afford a short nap.

* * *

He wakes up groggily, pulling out his phone to check the time. Ah, fuck. There’s one hour til Zack’s supposed to come back, he hasn’t done anything he planned to do. and he’s still a mess. It’s not like he owns anything particularly nice but it makes him self-conscious. He spends half the time getting ready and the other half once again pointlessly scrolling through social media. 

It’s a grey pleated skirt that’s long enough to cover his legs but not trail on the floor. He hasn’t worn it since…he first bought it, probably. Everything’s been t-shirts and lounge pants to go with a terrible sleeping schedule lately. The fabric brushes against his legs in a comforting sort of way. _Swish._ He takes a photo in the full-body mirror.

Zack declares him “extremely fucking sexy”, which probably translates to “decent enough for someone who hasn’t spoken to anyone else in weeks”. Cloud likes to blur the line between feeling like a god and having a single shred of self-esteem. Depends on the day.

Right. He could go without the loud bass that immediately starts to give him a headache. There are too many people and too many voices. He clings to Zack sort of desperately, who bounces from person to person at the speed of light and somehow seems to know everyone. No one really takes note of him, but that’s fine. Better, actually.

He doesn't pay attention to the people much, not until Zack is excitedly dragging him to a person with ridiculously long silver hair, who’s even taller than Zack. He sips a bright turquoise drink from a glass in his hand.

“Seph!”

“Zack.”

“This is Cloud,” Zack says, pushing him forward. Cloud nearly stumbles in his flats (they’ve barely got heels but he hasn’t worn them in forever, okay?) and tries not to let his jaw hang open. 

It’s _Sephiroth._

Like, youngest company president ever graduated from Shinra with the highest honors _Sephiroth._

He splutters, “Y-You know—”

“Unfortunately. Zack is a friend of a friend.” Sephiroth is wearing a perfectly tailored suit, which is way too formal for a trashy party like this but it’s _him._ He even looks _good_ in the shitty purple-tinted lighting. 

“Dude, that’s cold.” Zack places a hand on Cloud’s shoulder. “Anyways, meet your idol. I’ll be back later.” 

“Wait—” Zack is gone, disappeared into the crowd. Cloud is alone with Sephiroth.

“ _Idol?_ ” 

“He was—exaggerating.” Cloud prays that the shitty lighting hides his blush. 

“Zack’s told me quite a lot about you,” Sephiroth says, and Cloud wants to disintegrate on the spot. “Would you like a drink?” 

“Sure,” he agrees, trying to keep his voice steady, and nearly drops the glass that Sephiroth hands him. It’s his own. Sephiroth strides off and returns quickly with another.

“I’ve heard you’re quite talented.”

“Um,” he says eloquently. “Just...doing my best. I don’t know what Zack told you, but—”

Sephiroth cuts him off before he starts panic-rambling. “Nothing bad, I assure you. He simply mentioned your hard-working and selfless nature.” He gives Cloud what is probably meant to be a reassuring smile, though his brain is still stuck on the fact that _Sephiroth is speaking to him._ He doesn’t know whether to be slightly proud or completely mortified. 

“I, um, thanks?”

Sephiroth laughs. Is it possible for his cheeks to be warmer?

“I apologize. Your expression is quite amusing.” 

“I-it’s fine. I’m just, ah, surprised to be meeting you.” Absentmindedly, he sips at his drink. It’s sort of sweet and it burns his throat going down. The back of his brain unnecessarily provides him with _indirect kiss._ Which also reminds him that Sephiroth is just hopelessly beautiful and Cloud is two seconds away from spontaneously combusting.

“It’s my pleasure. Actually, I have a proposal for you.”

Cloud blinks. Sephiroth sips from his glass.

“A...proposal?”

“Think of it as...a paid internship. I cannot tell you the details now, but if you are interested, please let me know.”

Hold on. Slow down. Sephiroth wants him...at the company. At Jenova. 

Cloud was _good enough_ compared to the people around him. Not that unique. Why would…?

“It would be a great opportunity for you,” Sephiroth says, as if Cloud needs convincing. Maybe he does. He feels like someone’s about to jump in front of him and tell him this is a prank, or he’s going to wake up from a dream. He’d basically be set if he could actually get a job there.

“I...I’d like to hear the details,” he manages to say without dying. 

Something brushes against his hand. _Oh._ Sephiroth’s gloved hand cradles his own for some reason. 

“Contact me when you are able.” He slips a small card into Cloud’s hand. “I would love to see you again, Cloud.” 

He stands there, entranced, as Sephiroth lets go, turns around, and disappears. He stares at the card in his hand for a really, really long time.

He sets the glass down on a random nearby table and rushes to the exit. 

* * *

_Zack: Where are you??_

_3 missed calls from Zack_

_Zack: Did you leave??_

_2 missed calls from Zack_

_Zack: Are you home??_

_yes,_ Cloud types. He feels guilty for not checking his phone on the way back, but his mind had been wholly focused on...other things. Like the way leather feels against your skin. Is his hand tingly from that or loss of blood circulation from holding his phone? Probably the second.

He lies on his side, phone in his hands, typing texts to Sephiroth, erasing them, typing them again. It was a normal business card, except when he was fidgeting with it on the bus he’d discovered that there was a different phone number scrawled on the back. In perfect, elegant black ink. 

What the _hell_ was that supposed to mean?

_A proposal._

Cloud stares into nothingness for a few more minutes. To Tifa, he replies, _yea,_ even though she probably won’t see it until morning and she might have given up on him already.

His thoughts are too scattered to do his work and too excited to fall asleep. Well, less _excited_ and more anxious-but-curious-enough-to-find-out? It felt like a dream. It threw an absolute curveball into his so far monotonous and stressful school career and holy crap Zack was literally friends with Sephiroth and never told him. Zack would say, _You never asked,_ and grin like he was proud of himself.

To his surprise, Tifa replies, _Go to sleep._

_You: you’re awake_

_Tifa: Pulling all-nighters is bad for you._

_You: and yet here u r doing the same thing. where r we meeting tmr_

_Tifa: Same place?_

_You: yeah sure_

_Tifa: See you. You better sleep soon._

_You: uh huh_

He does turn off his phone and set it on the bedside table, though. He stares, wide-awake, at the ceiling.

_Hi! This is Cloud. Sorry in advance if you didn’t mean for me to text you, I assumed that—_

Dammit. Could his brain just shut up for a bit?

Would it be weirder if he called? Would it be better if he emailed? But that was—also weird, because he probably put the other number there with the intention of Cloud using it. 

_Hi, this is Cloud. You mentioned a—_

He would text him in the morning. Or, no, in the afternoon so it didn’t seem like it was the first thing on his mind. Okay, after he got back from lunch. 

He would. Text him. 

_This is Cloud! I’m free on—_

Fuck, when _was_ he free? He resists the urge to pick up his phone again. 

He rolls over, yells softly into his pillow, clenches his eyes shut, and tries to focus on his breathing.

He would text him. Tomorrow.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two seemingly unimportant conversations.

**_Several Years Ago_ **

“Seph?”

“Yes?”

“I really do hate having to be the one to say this, but you are seriously taking _way_ too much responsibility right now.”

“...Did Angeal put you up to this?”

“No, but that’s not the point! We’re here to _help you._ Stop trying to do everything.”

“It’s nothing I haven't done before.”

“That doesn’t mean you should.”

“It’s what I need to do. I’m fine.”

“Then, you’re free to go out tonight?”

“I—”

“Exactly.”

“...You know that—”

“I do! But you’re not really showing it. You’re burying yourself in your work. Things are supposed to be better.”

“...I’ll be free. Tonight.”

“You’re not doing anything work-related tomorrow.”

“I need to—”

“You’re not. Doing anything. Tomorrow.”

“...If you insist.”

* * *

Cloud wakes up to the sun blazing through the curtains, bright and well past when his alarm should have gone off. Oh, he forgot to set it last night. Well, at least he didn't have a morning class today. He wouldn't have agreed to go with Zack if he did, but he’d just lost a few hours. Nevermind that he was seriously lacking sleep a majority of the time.

He grabs his phone off the table. Still enough time to get ready before he needed to head out to see Tifa, thankfully.

“Why didn’t you wake me up?” Cloud yawns, stumbling into the hallway and seeing Zack on the couch. 

“Dude, have you _seen_ your dark circles? I wasn’t about to wake you up.” 

“But—” He yawns again. “Whatever.” He drags himself to the bathroom and takes a good look at his eyes. It’s pretty bad. He doesn't remember what they looked like before. Oh yeah, wasn’t there something he was supposed to do?

_I would love to see you again._

He nearly drops his toothbrush. The entire goddamn reason he’d been up for so long in the first place. He stops himself before he can mentally type and erase some more texts and goes through what he needs to do. Fix his hair, change, make sure everything’s in his bag, walk to the station, walk to the cafe two blocks down, find Tifa. After lunch, to the campus and his afternoon class, then back to the apartment—

“Hey, what did Sephiroth say?” Zack’s voice is slightly muffled by the door.

Cloud pauses in the middle of considering a hair spike. “Um. Does it matter?”

“Oooh, he told you to keep it a secret, huh.”

“He said he was gonna offer me, like, an internship or something? I don’t know. I have to contact him, still.”

“Right. Okay. See you, Spike.” Zack’s footsteps fade away from the door.

Cloud blinks at himself in the mirror. Was he missing something? He shakes his head to clear it, rapidly blinks a few more times. Then he goes to change.

Casual. Pants. He misses the skirt. It’s been thrown haphazardly on top of a too large pile that needs to be taken care of soon. 

Keys, wallet, book, notebook, pens, laptop, phone. 

Should he text…?

He can spare a few minutes. _Hi, this is Cloud. I’m interested in your proposal._

Wait. — _in the internship._ Better.

Was that good enough?

_Tifa: I’m here early._

Automatically, his thumb goes to swipe the notification away. It hits the send button on the way.

“Shit.”

That was...fine. Maybe now he would stop agonizing over it. He exhales deeply. Okay, time to go. 

He tries very hard to not think of anything in particular on the way there. He walks on autopilot. It’s a wonder he doesn’t run straight into anything.

He can smell the cafe before he rounds the corner—the fragrant aroma of fresh flowers surrounds it, bursts of color decorating the outside and inside. _Leaf House._ It's got one of those doors that makes a bell ring when you open or close it. He scans around for Tifa. She waves at him from a table next to the window. 

“Hey,” he says, setting his bag down.

“Glad you made it.” She smiles as if she hadn’t quite expected him to. He smiles back without really thinking about it. “Something bothering you last night?”

“Like besides last-minute finishing homework?” The vase on their table has an arrangement of yellow flowers. He rolls a petal between his fingers.

“You know what I mean.”

“It’s nothing.”

Before she can press him, a cheery voice asks, “Are you two ready to order?”

It’s the girl who usually works the shift at this time, her brown hair in two loose braids in the front and a pink bow in the back. Her name’s Aerith, according to the name tag, though he doesn’t remember her saying it out loud before.

“Cloud?” Tifa asks.

“A coffee,” he says, not quite looking at either of them. “Please.”

“I’ll get an iced tea and the lunch special for both of us, thank you.” She smiles gratefully at Aerith, in a please-excuse-my-friend-for-being-like-this way.

“Of course! I’ll get your drinks right out to you.” 

Tifa bothers to wait until Aerith is a respectable distance away before saying, “Cloud. What’s up?”

“I went with Zack. To a party.”

“Oh! So _that’s_ why you were up so late.”

“Yeah.”

“And….?”

“That’s it.”

“Hmm….”

He lets the silence stretch. He thinks of Sephiroth and his leather gloves and his long, silky silver hair. How did he even care for that? It must be—

“Here you go. Coffee—” She sets it down in front of him, plus a tiny pitcher of cream and a container of sugar packets. “—and your iced tea.”

They both thank her. Aerith hums and nods, then whisks away.

“So….?” Tifa stirs her straw. _Clink clink clink._

He stares into his cup, and considers just drinking it black. “You know who Sephiroth is, right?”

“The president of Jenova?”

“Yeah.” He rips open a sugar packet, stirs it with the tiny spoon. Tifa tilts her head so that it falls directly into his field of vision, waiting. 

He looks up at her, and she straightens. She sips her tea. He pours about half the cream from the pitcher and stirs some more.

“He asked me to—he offered me an internship.”

She pauses, straw held between her fingers. “ _Sephiroth_ asked you?”

“Yeah. At the party. Zack is friends with him, apparently.”

“That’s—I mean, that’s kind of sudden, isn’t it?” She pinches the plastic. “Does he know you?”

Cloud wasn’t sure what kind of reaction he had been expecting, really. Tifa’s skeptical expression puts him on edge for some reason. His excitement-anxiousness sinks a little further into just anxiousness.

“I mean, Zack introduced him to me. I don’t know what he told him.”

Tifa purses her lips, but doesn’t say anything.

“Is there something wrong…?”

“Are you going to accept?” 

“Uh...probably, yeah. I still need to talk to him about it, but I don’t see why not.” He pauses. “Do you know him or something?”

“Do you know Shinra?”

Okay, topic change. “That’s what Jenova was, right?"

“Yeah.” Tifa nods. “Actually, nevermind. I’m sorry for being weird.” The tension in her shoulders drops, but her smile is a bit strained. “You should take it, it’ll be good for you.” 

At that, Aerith comes by with their food, and they both let the subject drop. Tifa tells him about the new job she’s gotten at the bar in the area. It’s been a while since they’ve gotten to hang out, so they catch each other up on things. By the time they’re done eating, Sephiroth has dropped from the forefront of his mind. He takes out his phone to check the time.

_Sephiroth: Wonderful. Are you available to come to the office this weekend?_

His heart jumps in his chest. He stares, not unlocking his phone.

“Cloud? Do you need to leave yet?”

He blinks. Oh. Yeah, he probably should. “Yeah, was just reading a text.” He shoves his phone back in his pocket with more force than necessary.

Tifa asks for the check, and Aerith comes back with their already split bills. They exit together, bell ringing as the door shuts behind them.

“You good for next week?” She stops at the intersection where they part, and he stops with her.

“Yeah, should be.”

“Good luck with your internship, then.” She smiles, bright this time, and waves.

“Thanks.” He smiles back, taking out his phone as soon as she leaves.

_You: Yes, Saturday would be good. What time?_

He means to turn it off and put it away, but the little bubble that means the other person’s typing pops up almost immediately after he hits send. He waits.

_Sephiroth: 12 PM. We can discuss over lunch, if you’d like._

What was this, a date? He scoffs at himself out loud for thinking that. He’s just being friendly, but honestly Cloud has no idea why he’s asking _him._ Surely there were students better than him, more capable of handling...whatever it was. Though it wasn’t like he was about to turn him down.

_You: Sounds good!_

This time, he turns his phone off immediately and starts heading to the campus. 

He’d briefly forgotten about Tifa’s odd reaction in the midst of that. Huh. Well, maybe he could stand to be a little more suspicious. Though she’d encouraged him after? She was probably just concerned about how sudden it was. It’s not like just going to see Sephiroth was accepting a contract, but it’d probably be rude if he didn’t after all of that…

He sighs, and resolves to put it out of his mind until the weekend. 


End file.
